This weekend our city held it's annual Fireworks Festival which includes three days of celebration down at the riverfront park. Many many people camp there, a carnival is in town, various music/bands perform, and there are fireworks displays each of the three nights with the biggest and best show on the third night. The show is quite a site to behold and traditionally the city draws tens of thousands of people for the show on the last night.
This year, our church has been challenging ourselves with a summer of outreach, activites intended to push out into the community as well as pull others into our church. This weekend it was time to push ourselves out into the fireworks festival crowd. Our mission: distribute over 1,000 bottles of ice cold, absolutely free, water. Each bottle was tagged with our church logo and information on our location and services. Yesterday afternoon, we descended on the park and spend two hours wandering through the park asking the question, "Could I interest you in an ice cold bottle of water absolutely free?" People typically started to decline but then stopped when they heard the phrase "absolutely free". Most people then accepted and were grateful for the drink in the 80+ degree weather. There was no sermon, no uncomfortable confrontations, just a group of people showing the love of Jesus in a very simple but relevent way. Overall it was very well received and we got lots of positive comments. One person that struck me was what looked like a single mom with five little kids. We gave them all water and she was so grateful and her kids were so cute and polite in thanking us. To some, saving the $10 it would have cost to buy those waters could have been a big help in affording a fun day together at the festival. We were exhausted when we were done from all the walking (had to have been miles!) but energized from taking part in this random act of kindness. It felt good to leave people wondering why a stranger would be so nice to them with nothing in return. Hopefully some people will take the card attached to each bottle of water and have the courage to visit with us some Sunday. You never know when a seed planted with something as simple as a bottle of cold water will start to grow - that is our prayer.
Praising God for His goodness in providing us with beautiful weather, sturdy legs, and a receptive crowed- Kendra
A walk in the rain.....life is kind of like that isn't it? Sometimes a walk in the rain is cold and uncomfortable and sometimes a walk in the rain is ultimately refreshing. The bottom line is a walk in the rain, just like life, is what you make of it. And therein, I suppose, lies the challenge. To take your walk pleasing to God and a blessing to those who are walking in the rain with you.
Kendra
1 comment:
That's so awesome...great job!!
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